Ready to take on the big boys? Want to expand your line of
products or services? If so, take a lesson in rebranding from Arcoa
Industries, a San Marcos, California-based manufacturer of
litter-removal tools.

Before

In 1996, when Marty Ziegenfuss took over the company her father
founded, Arcoa offered one product: the E-Z Reacher, a long-handled
pick-up tool that gave impetus to the tagline "Our business is
picking up." The company's packaging and marketing
materials were produced ad hoc-different agencies handled different
components. Says Ziegenfuss, "Our materials had no
consistency." Plus, Arcoa's products were introduced on
the whims of engineers. The Range Divider, for example, was its
only product in the golf industry. Most important, the
company's core product, the E-Z Reacher, wasn't being
accepted at the "big box" retailers. "With our
packaging," explains Ziegenfuss, "we didn't look like
a big company."

During

In 1999, Arcoa hired Project Works, a marketing firm in
Escondido, California. Project Works' Leslie Mogul and Rob
Mikuteit conducted a positioning study, created new packaging and
introduced marketing materials that scream "We're
professionals!" The new tagline-"Simplifying everyday
chores"-serves as a litmus test. If products don't fit
under that umbrella, they aren't introduced. The Range Divider
was discontinued, and new products such as the E-Z Pruner and
Bigmouth and Dirtbag trash bags were launched.

After

Today, Arcoa products are sold in Home Depot and Ace Hardware
stores, and sales have quadrupled since 1996. The moral of the
story? To turn into a big company, sometimes you have to act like
one.

Elizabeth J. Goodgold
is CEO and chief nuancer of The Nuancing Group, a brand consulting
firm in San Diego.